Index



(No Model.)

' F. L. MILLER.

INDEX.

No. 379,320. Patented Mar. 13, 1888.

I i is.

N PETERS. Pilcb-Lilhagnpher, Wahingmn. D (l UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

FRED L. MILLER, QFCHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

INDEX.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 37 March 1888- Application filed November 17, 1886. Serial No. 219,163. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, FRED L. MILLER, a citizen of the United States, residing at Cl1icago, in the county of (306k and State of Illinois, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Indexes, which I desire to protect by Letters Patent of the United States, of which the following is a specification.

Heretofore indexes have for the most part been made so that the exposed portions thereof are visible from the left-hand side of the page only. This form of index requires the use of the right hand in turning it. Oonsid erable time would be saved if it were possible for the bookkeeper to manipulate the index entirely with the left hand, the right hand being free meanwhile for taking notes from the index.

It is the object of my present invention to so arrange theindex that this may be the case,

7 and to this end I propose to reverse the position of the exposed portions of the index, so that they shall be visible from the right-hand side of the page, and to so place them that they may be readily manipulated by the left hand alone. To further facilitate the use of the index with one hand I propose to cutaway the covers of the book, as hereinafter shown.

In the drawings forming part of this specification and illustrating this invention, Figure 1 is a top view of an index made according to my invention, lying open, with all the leaves thrown to the left; and Fig. 2is a central crosssection of the index as it appears when closed.

The exposed portions carrying the several letters of the alphabet or other index-characters are provided either by cutting away the edges of the leaves, as shown, or by the use of tabs, or in any other suitable manner. In Fig. 1 the leaves are shown as pushed back somewhat from the edge of the cover and curved up, as indicated by the shading, so as to expose the cover, in the edge of which is cut, as shown, a recess, to enable the bookkeeper to readily grasp the leaves with his left hand when they are lying upon the lefthand cover. Likewise the upper edge of the right-hand cover of the book is recessed at the top, as shown, to enable the leaves to be readily grasped by the left hand when they are lying upon the right-hand cover, and obviating the common necessity of lifting the cover in turning the index. be cut away without cutting the other, if desired, and in fact it is not essential to my invention that the covers be cut atall, although the recesses add materially to the convenience of using the index." I

I do not confine myself to any particular means for attaching the exposed index characters to the pages of the book, the gist of my invention lying in their exposure toward the right-hand side of the sheet, by whatever attached, and in such a position that they may be readily manipulated by the left hand alone.

I am aware that' it has been proposed to make indexes with the index-characters exposed from the right-hand side of the leaf, but placed at the bottoms of the leaves, or otherwise, so as not to be within the convenient grasp of a single hand. Such constructions I do not claim.

I do not confine myself to any particular form or style of index. It may be bound separately or in the front part of the book with which it is used.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim, and desire to protect by Letters Patent, 1s-

An index in which the exposed index-characters are arranged to be visible from the righthand side of the leaves and are placed along their outer edges, the cover inclosing the said index or book cut away, the left portion or leaf of the cover being cut away in its front or vertical margin and theright portion or leaf cut away at its top, substantially as shown and described.

FRED L. MILLER. Witnesses:

FREDERICK (l. GooDWIN, E. L. HUBER.

One of these covers may 

